#1: August Week 4 Review & September Plans

Episode Highlights

* Self-Introduction: My background as an English coach, guide interpreter in training, and marathon runner.

* Fukui Torrential Rain: What happened two days ago and the unexpected alarm at 2:00 AM.

* Weekly Review: Hits & misses in content creation, running, and studying Japanese history.

* Key Learning: The massive gap between “just knowing” and “actually being able to do it.”

* September Goals: Weekly English podcasts, resuming note/X posts, and running targets.

Links & Contact

* Japanese Version:

* LISTEN

* Spotify

* Apple Podcast

* Free English Trial Lesson & Inquiries:

* https://mosh.jp/services/380220?openExternalBrowser=1

Full Transcript

Welcome to Taiki Arai’s Solo Talk Radio! First, let me introduce myself. I’m Taiki, an English coach and podcaster. Currently, I’m preparing for the National Government Licensed Guide Interpreter exam coming up next August, while doing some tour guiding on the side. I’m also training hard to break the 3-hour mark in a marathon next March. In my free time, I love reading and watching anime.

Before jumping into today’s main topic, I really need to talk about what happened here in Fukui two days ago, on Saturday. It was around midnight or 1:00 AM when an unbelievably heavy torrential rain started pouring down. Then around 2:00 AM, my phone suddenly went off with an emergency alert alarm—it was honestly terrifying.

Here in Fukui Prefecture, we usually divide the region into two main areas: Reihoku in the north and Reinan in the south. I live in Sabae City in the Reihoku area. Further north, in places like Fukui City and Mikuni, some residential areas actually suffered severe flooding. Just a few days prior, Ishikawa and Toyama prefectures had reached Level 5 emergency warnings, so I thought Fukui might dodge the worst of it. But seeing this happen right in front of us was a real wake-up call, making me feel the tangible effects of global warming. My heart goes out to everyone affected.

Now, getting into today’s main topic: I’ll be looking back at the fourth week of August and sharing my plans for September.

I’ve been reviewing each week in Japanese since the first week of August. To express myself in both English and Japanese, I decided to try making this double-language output one of my daily habits.

So, what went well this week? Let’s start with the good points.

First, regarding my content creation goals for August, I successfully posted two videos on junior high school-level English grammar and one update for “Mimi Eigo” as planned. I also posted two short spoken videos on TikTok. While uploading them was a win in itself, I realized that given my current daily routine, keeping up with short video creation takes a massive amount of time and effort. So I decided to pivot and switch that effort into uploading podcasts like this instead.

Besides that, I stumbled upon a show on Amazon Prime Video called Can You Make 100 Friends? (Season 2). I happened to open Prime Video on Friday night and saw that Season 2 had just been released on August 28th. I had watched Season 1 last year and loved it, so I ended up binge-watching the entire second season in just one night! Season 2 was every bit as good as the first. What impressed me most was the incredible dynamic between Gekidan Hitori, Fuwa-chan, and the duo Masuda and Koyabu, as well as an appearance by Yuji Maeda, the CEO of SHOWROOM.

Let me give you a quick overview of how the show works. There are three main host players, and each player calls their actual friends to ask if they can come to Makuhari Messe on short notice. Once those friends arrive on-site, they team up to play games and earn coins. After four rounds of games, the team with the most coins wins a grand prize of 100 million yen. Both the players and their invited friends know about this massive financial reward, which creates intense entertainment and fascinating human drama.

Anyway, getting back to my weekly review: I ran around 25 km this week, bringing my total running distance for August to about 70 km. Back at the beginning of August, I set an ambitious goal of running 100 to 150 km, so I couldn’t reach that target. However, considering how brutal the summer heat and humidity have been, and remembering how little I ran this time last year, I feel good about putting in the hard work.

On another note, I attended the selection process for a local community initiative here in Fukui. It was great to interact with people from totally different backgrounds. Overall, I wasn’t too nervous, but I did get a bit flustered during one task where we had to give a self-introduction to everyone in exactly 45 seconds. Even though it was clearly written in the orientation guidelines, it had completely slipped my mind, so I had to improvise without any preparation!

Moreover, I officially resumed my Japanese history studies, focusing specifically on the ancient period from the Paleolithic to the Kofun period. That’s because I’m taking the Level 2 Japanese History Test on November 15th. Passing this exam will grant me an exemption from the history section of the National Government Licensed Guide Interpreter exam next year. With about two and a half months left, devoting around an hour every day to structured review gives me a solid chance of passing.

Next, what are some areas for improvement—what I like to call my “MOA” (Mindset or Action to improve)?

First, regarding my work as an English instructor, I’m currently offering a free trial lesson to my listeners. However, I feel the marketing flow to help people actually sign up needs refinement. Up until now, I relied mostly on word-of-mouth or people I already knew in person. But as I transition my coaching business to a fully online model, establishing a clear, digital acquisition path has become a key challenge.

Second, while I was able to track what tasks I completed each week, I fell short on visualizing how much time I actually spent on each activity. Merely tracking tasks is okay, but visualizing time allocation gives a much clearer sense of momentum toward long-term goals.

Third, as I mentioned in my previous updates, I’ve been getting ready to register on two major tour-guiding platforms. While my applications are approved, I haven’t quite finished setting up my profile details yet.

So, how would I rate this week overall?

I’d give myself a 60 out of 100. I hit the absolute bare minimum by publishing my scheduled content, which is good. But my pending to-do list is gradually piling up. Since my willpower alone is unreliable, I need to focus on building robust habits and relying on autopilot systems rather than pure effort.

Now, looking at what changed compared to last week:

My primary content projects are steadily moving forward. But the biggest realization I had this week was understanding the massive gulf between “just knowing” something and “actually being able to execute it”.

For example, when I played soft volleyball recently, I watched YouTube tutorials beforehand on how to hit a topspin drive attack. But when I actually stepped onto the court, I couldn’t execute the technique at all. It was a vivid reminder that possessing intellectual knowledge is fundamentally different from physical mastery.

To bridge that gap and move from “knowing” to “can do,” focused practice is non-negotiable. But even more important than mindless repetition is deeply grasping the underlying core principle. I’m often reminded of a quote by major league pitcher Yusei Kikuchi, who said that if you truly grasp the core mechanics of how to do something, you can reproduce that skill anytime with minimal practice. I also realized that while people’s words can be unreliable, observing their actual behavior reveals the ultimate truth.

Lastly, what are my goals for September?

I have three main objectives. First, I want to establish a firm habit of publishing an English podcast episode once a week, just like my Japanese show. This will replace my previous short video efforts and move me closer to an ideal production system.

Second, audio content alone has a limited reach. To help more people discover my work, I will resume writing articles on note and posting updates on X (Twitter). Text-based media makes it much easier for new listeners to discover and consume information.

Third, for my running, I aim to log at least 100 km, or ideally 150 to 200 km in September. That breaks down to running about 10 to 12 km per session. In October, I’ll be participating in the Shibamasa Relay Marathon as part of a team, so I want to build up my stamina and get into peak physical shape!

If you’d like to listen to the original Japanese edition of this podcast, please check out “Taiki Arai’s Hitorigoto Radio”. I’ve left the link in the show notes below.

Also, if you’re interested in taking my free English trial lesson, preparing for Eiken exams, or if you simply have questions or advice about language learning, feel free to contact me through the form in the show notes anytime!

Thank you so much for listening all the way to the end. See you in the next episode!

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bignoblemen.substack.com

サマリー

このエピソードでは、荒井大貴が自己紹介と福井での豪雨被害に触れた後、8月第4週の振り返りと9月の目標を共有します。コンテンツ制作の進捗やAmazon Prime Videoの視聴体験、ランニングや日本史学習の成果を報告しつつ、英語コーチングの課題や「知っている」と「できる」の間の大きな隔たりについて考察。9月は英語ポッドキャストの週1配信、NoteやXでの情報発信再開、そしてランニング目標達成を目指します。

自己紹介と福井の豪雨災害

Welcome to Taiki Arai's Solo Talk Radio. First,let me introduce myself.

I'm Taiki, an English coach and podcaster.Currently, I'm preparing for the National

Government Licensed Guide Interpreter exam comingup next August while doing some tour

guiding on the side. I'm also training hard tobreak the 3-hour mark in a marathon next March.

In my free time, I love reading and watchinganime.

Okay, before jumping into today's main topic, Ireally need to talk about what happened here

in Fukui two days ago on Saturday. It was aroundmidnight or 1am when an unbelievably

heavy torrential rain started pouring down. Thenaround 2am, my phone suddenly went off

with an emergency alert alarm. It wasunnecessarily terrifying. Here in FukuiPrefecture,

we usually divide the region into two main areas,Reihoku in the north and Reinan in the south.

I live in Sabae City in the Reihoku area. Furthernorth, in places like Fukui City

and Sakai City, some residential areas actuallysuffered severe flooding.

Just a few days prior, Ishikawa and ToyamaPrefectures had reached level 5 emergencywarnings,

so I thought Fukui might dodge the worst of it.But seeing this happen right in front of us was

a real wake-up call, making me feel the tangibleeffects of global warming.

My heart goes out to everyone affected.

8月第4週の成果：コンテンツ、エンタメ、学習

Now, getting into today's main topic.

I'll be looking back at the fourth week of Augustand sharing my plans for September.

I've been reviewing each week in Japanese sincethe first week of August. To express myself in

both English and Japanese, I decided to try makingthis double-language output one of my daily

habits. So, what went well this week? Let's startwith the good points. First, regarding my content

goals for August, I successfully posted two videoson junior high school level English grammar

and one update for Mimi Eigo as planned. I alsoposted two short-spoken videos on TikTok.

While uploading them was a win in itself, Irealized that given my current daily routine,

keeping up with short video creation takes amassive amount of time and effort.

So, I decided to pivot and switch that effort intouploading podcasts like this instead.

Besides that, I stumbled upon a show on AmazonPrime Video called

Can You Call 100 Friends? Season 2. I happened toopen Prime Video on Friday night and saw that

season 2 had just been released on August 28th. Ihad watched season 1 last year and loved it,

so I ended up binge-watching the entire secondseason in just one night. Season 2 was every bit

as good as the first. What impressed me most wasthe incredible dynamic between Gekidan Hitori,

Fuwa-chan, and the duo Masuda and Koyabu, as well asan appearance by Yuji Maeda,

the CEO of SHOWROOM. Let me give you a quickoverview of how the show works.

There are three main host players and each playercalls their actual friends to ask if they can

come to Makuhari Messe on short notice. Once thosefriends arrive on site, they team up to

play games and earn coins. After four rounds ofgames, the team with the most coins wins a grand

prize of 100 million yen. Both the players andtheir invited friends know about this massive

financial reward, which creates intenseentertainment and fascinating human drama.

Anyway, getting back to my weekly review, I ranaround 25 kilometers this week,

bringing my total running distance for August toabout 70 kilometers. Back at the beginning of

August, I set an ambitious goal of running 100 to150 kilometers, so I couldn't reach that target.

However, considering how brutal the summer heatand humidity have been, and remembering how little

I ran this time last year, I feel good aboutputting in the hard work. On another note,

I attended the selection process for a localcommunity initiative here in Fukui.

It was great to interact with people from totallydifferent backgrounds. Overall, I wasn't toonervous,

but I did get a bit flustered during one taskwhere we had to give a self-introduction to

everyone in exactly 45 seconds. Even though it wasclearly written in the orientation guidelines,

it had completely slipped my mind, so I had toimprovise without any preparation.

Moreover, I officially resumed my Japanese historystudies, focusing specifically on the

Ancient Period from the Paleolithic to the KofunPeriod. That's because I'm taking the Level 2

Japanese History test on November 15th. Passingthis exam will grant me an exemption from the

history selection of the National GovernmentLicensed Guide Interpreter exam next year.

With about two and a half months left, devotingaround an hour every day to structured review

gives me a solid chance of passing. Next, what aresome areas for improvement?

8月第4週の課題と自己評価

What I like to call my MOA, Mindset for Action toImprove. First, regarding my work as an English

instructor, I'm currently offering a free triallesson to my listeners. However, I feel the

marketing flow to help people actually sign upneeds refinement. Up until now, I relied mostly

on word of mouth or people I already knew inperson. But as I transitioned my coaching business

to a fully online model, establishing a cleardigital acquisition path has become a key

challenge. Second, while I was able to track whattasks I completed each week, I feel short on

visualizing how much time I actually spent on eachactivity. Merely tracking tasks is okay,

but visualizing time allocation gives a muchclearer sense of momentum toward long-term goals.

Third, as I mentioned in my previous updates, I'vebeen getting ready to register on two

major tour guiding platforms. While myapplications are approved, I haven't quitefinished

setting up my profile details yet. So how would Irate this week overall? I'd give myself a 60

out of 100. I hit the absolute bare minimum bypublishing my scheduled content, which is good.

But my pending to-do list is gradually pilling up.Since my willpower alone is unreliable,

I need to focus on building robust habits andrelying on autopilot systems rather than pure

effort. Now, looking at what changed compared tolast week. My primary content projects aresteadily

「知る」と「できる」のギャップ

moving forward. But the biggest realization I hadthis week was understanding the massive

gulf between just knowing something and actuallybeing able to execute it. For example, when I

played softball level recently, I watched YouTubetutorials beforehand on how to hit a top spin

drive attack. But when I actually stepped onto thecourt, I couldn't execute the technique at all.

It was a vivid reminder that possessingintellectual knowledge is fundamentally

different from physical mastery. To bridge thatgap and move from knowing to can-do,

focused practice is non-negotiable. But even moreimportant than mindless repetition

is deeply grasping the underlying core principle.I'm often reminded of a quote

by major league pitcher Yusei Kikuchi, who saidthat if you truly grasp the core mechanics of

how to do something, you can reproduce that skillanytime with minimal practice.

I also realized that while people's words can beunreliable, observing their actual behaviorreveals

the ultimate truth. Lastly, what are my goals forSeptember? I have three main objectives.

9月の目標：ポッドキャスト、発信、ランニング

First, I want to establish a firm habit ofpublishing an English podcast episode once a week,

just like my Japanese show. This will replace myprevious short video efforts and move me closer

to an ideal production system. Second, audiocontent alone has a limited reach. To help more

people discover my work, I will resume writingarticles on note and posting updates on X or

Twitter. Text-based media makes it much easier fornew listeners to discover and consume information.

Third, for my running, I aim to log at least 100km or ideally 150 to 200 km in September.

That breaks down to running about 10 to 12 km persession. In October, I'll be participating

in the Shibamasa Relay Marathon as part of a team,so I want to build up my stamina

and get into peak physical shape. OK, if you'dlike to listen to the

original Japanese edition of this podcast, pleasecheck out Arai Taiki no Hitorigoto Radio.

I've left the link in the show notes below. Also,if you're interested in taking my free

English trial lesson, preparing for Eiken exams, orif you simply have questions or advice about

language learning, feel free to contact me throughthe form in the show notes anytime.

Thank you for listening all the way to the end.See you in the next episode. Goodbye!